Preview:
India will host West Indies in the three-match ODI series which will get underway from 6th February. After suffering an embarrassing whitewash against South Africa last month, Men in Blue are back in action for the home series. Rohit Sharma is all set to take the full-fledge captaincy role from this series. Key players Shikhar Dhawan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, and Navdeep Saini have been tested positive which is a big blow for the side, meanwhile, Ishan Kishan and Mayank Agarwal are drafted into the squad.
West Indies on the other hand are coming into this series with a fighting T20I series win over England 3-2. They will be confident of performing well against India who are unsettled at the moment. West Indies are currently ranked 8th in the ICC ODI rankings.
Match Details:
India vs West Indies, 1st ODI
Venue: Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
Date & Time: February 6th, at 1:30 PM IST and Local Time
Live Streaming: Star Sports Network and Disney+Hotstar
Pitch Report:
Narendra Modi Stadium is hosting an ODI for the first time since 2014. There are multiple pitches with contrasting characters, and we can expect a well-balanced one for the series opener. Bowling first seems to be a good option.
Probable Playing XIs for IND vs WI:
India
Rohit Sharma (c), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Shardul Thakur, Washington Sundar, Deepak Chahar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Prasidh Krishna/Mohammad Siraj
West Indies
Shai Hope (wk), Nkrumah Bonner/Brandon King, Shamarh Brooks, Darren Bravo, Nicholas Pooran, Kieron Pollard (c), Jason Holder, Romario Shepherd/Hayden Walsh Jr, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Kemar Roach
Top Picks for IND vs WI Dream11 Match:
Top Picks – Batters
Former India skipper, Virat Kohli scored two half-centuries in the last series against South Africa. He is still waiting for his 71st ton and hopeful will end the century drought in this series.
Shamarh Brooks made a good start to his ODI career last month against Ireland. He scored 137 runs in 3 matches at an average of 45.66 with the highest score of 93.
Top Picks – All-Rounders
Washington Sundar has played only one ODI in his career so far and it’s the right opportunity for him to cement his spot in the long run. His batting skills will be tested than his bowling in this series.
Jason Holder has played plenty of matches in the Indian subcontinent and knows the conditions really well. He had an excellent T20I series against England where he was adjudged as the player of the series.
Top Picks – Bowlers
Yuzvendra Chahal is the lead spinner for India in this series. He bowled well in the friendly batting conditions of South Africa where he picked up 2 wickets in 3 matches.
Alzarri Joseph is a skiddy customer and can cause trouble with the new ball. He has scalped 64 wickets in his 40 ODI matches with the best figures of 5 for 56.
Top Picks – Wicketkeepers
All eyes will be on Rishabh Pant who is a natural stroke-maker, and he is not afraid of attacking from ball one. He has scored 630 runs in his 19 ODI innings at an average of 33.15.
IND vs WI Must Picks for Dream11 Fantasy Cricket:
| Player | Career ODI Stats |
| Virat Kohli | 12285 runs and 4 wickets |
| Rohit Sharma | 9205 runs and 8 wickets |
| Rishabh Pant | 630 runs |
| Shamarh Brooks | 137 runs |
| Jason Holder | 141 wickets and 1954 runs |
Suggested Playing XI No.1 for IND vs WI Dream11 Fantasy Cricket:
Nicholas Pooran, Shai Hope (vc), Rishabh Pant, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (c), Shamarh Brooks, Jason Holder, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shardul Thakur, Alzarri Joseph
Suggested Playing XI No.2 for IND vs WI Dream11 Fantasy Cricket:
Shai Hope, Rishabh Pant, Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Shamarh Brooks, Kieron Pollard, Jason Holder (vc), Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Akeal Hosein
IND vs WI Risky Captaincy Choices:
Deepak Chahar’s inclusion will provide more depth in the batting for India. In the only ODI he played in South Africa, he smashed a good half-century and also picked up wickets with the ball. You can take a risk and pick him as your fantasy team skipper.
Nicholas Pooran is a small man but can hit big sixes. He has scored 1009 runs in his ODI career at an average of 25.22. He is a risky captaincy pick for your fantasy teams.
Player you should avoid:
Going with the team combination, it’s hard to pick Kemar Roach in the final eleven.
